NHS managers and staff from eight acute trusts across the North East and Cumbria met with Getting It Right First Time’s NENCY regional team to share their experiences of orthopaedic surgery services since the launch of the GIRFT national report into orthopaedic surgery in 2015.
GIRFT Chair Professor Tim Briggs gave an introduction and shared the national picture before the trusts presented on their own services, outlining where changes have been made, how patient care has improved and where savings have been realised.
Several examples of good practice were shared through the day, and the open forum style of the event meant attendees could ask questions and develop an understanding of how improvements have been achieved, to help replicate them at their own trusts.
Professor Briggs said he was impressed with what he saw at the event. “It was clear to me from the presentations that these trusts are committed to making continued positive changes to orthopaedic services,” he said.
“It was great to see how much has already been done since the GIRFT report in 2015, and I am confident that the people of the North East and Cumbria are in good hands when it comes to orthopaedic services.”
Professor Briggs’ 2015 orthopaedic surgery review established the GIRFT methodology and became the pilot for the current programme. The team visited more than 140 providers, covering more than 200 hospital sites. Following revisits, GIRFT is now working on a follow-up report looking at progress since the 2015 publication.
